Project 10073 Record: Sighting Report 15 December 1965

This document is an official Air Force incoming message regarding a series of UFO sightings reported in Oregon on December 15, 1965. Three separate observers, located at Kingsley AFB, near Lakeside, and in Albany, reported seeing a round, white-blue-green beam of light that appeared to be the size of a star. The object was described as balloon-shaped with a long tail that increased in size. Observers noted that the object travelled in a straight line, ascending from the east to the west, and eventually seemed to vaporize, leaving a contrail behind. The duration of the sightings ranged from 30 seconds to five minutes. The report includes detailed meteorological data for the observers' locations, noting clear to high thin scattered clouds and unlimited visibility. Major A. F. Shiflett, a staff intelligence officer at the Portland Air Defense Sector, concluded that the sightings coincided with the launch of a Minuteman missile from Vandenberg Air Force Base. The report notes that there appeared to be an unusual amount of visual phenomena associated with this specific launch.